Insularity
When I am not advancing arguments for an “insular” foreign policy, I sometimes brush up on my German, so I wasn’t the least bit concerned that Obama put out his advertisements in Berlin in the native language. I have a little theory that many of the people who endorse our “insular” foreign policy views tend to be more familiar with the cultures and languages of the rest of the world than those who would like to try to rule over it lead everyone to happiness and democracy–indeed, I suspect this is one reason we take some of the views we do–and it is remarkable how often this seems to be confirmed. If the problem with Obama’s rally in Berlin is that it’s in Berlin, you can make the case that this is unwise and will cause a backlash here at home, but are we really supposed to expect the Obama campaign to advertise the rally using English? Isn’t it enough that Obama can’t speak German (or pretty much any other foreign language)?
P.S. Yglesias will be pleased to know that the flier encourages people to use public transportation.
P.P.S. Also, the difference between the German-language fliers and that ridiculous Vero Possumus slogan is that the people who did the German fliers actually know German, which helps a bit.
Filed under: politics, foreign policy
[…] Off topic but not worthy of a separate post, I have a super hot scoop for Patrick Ruffini- sometimes, when foreign companies advertise their products in the United States, they use English, and not their native tongue, as you would have thought. It turns out that if you are Volkswagen, and you are wanting to reach people in the US, you should use English rather than German. I know, I know, that sounds crazy, but it is true. […]
So far, the foreign junket has done the man no harm. It may be dumb luck, which BHO seems to have in (dare I say it?) spades, or it may be someone’s smarts.
If you want to head up an Empire, why not tour the provinces?
And supposedly Americans hate the French language, not the German.
Honi soit qui mal y pense.